Kroeger chosen for Excellence in Social Work Award

The Pitt-Bradford Master of Social Work program presented its inaugural Pamela J. Cousins Excellence in Social Work Award to Kathy Kroeger, administrator of the Cameron and Elk Counties Behavioral and Developmental Program.

She was nominated by Tony Sowers, a licensed social worker working as a therapist at the Rehabilitation Center Inc. in Olean, N.Y.

In his nomination, Sowers said that the early part of his career in the mid-1990s was spent working for Kroeger in the Child Adolescent Service System Program (CASSP) for Cameron, Elk and McKean Counties.

He said Kroeger was “a boss that tirelessly championed a higher level of cooperation and teamwork, despite such obstacles as differing philosophies and 'turf' issues between agencies.”

He added that her influence motivated him to pursue further education and remain in the social work field.

Kroeger was a member of the first cohort of students to graduate from Pitt's MSW program at Pitt-Bradford. Sowers would be in the fourth cohort to graduate.

The Pamela J. Cousins Excellence in Social Work Award will be given each year to a graduate of the MSW program at Pitt-Bradford who has made meaningful contributions to social work through consistent excellence.

Cousins was an alumna of the program as well as an instructor. She was a long-time member of the Pennsylvania Children and Youth Administration and director of Children and Youth services for Elk County. She died in 2012 as the result of an automobile accident.

The award was presented as part of an MSW reunion evening and social networking event. Dr. Helen Cahalane, principal investigator for Child Welfare and Research Programs at the Pitt School of Social Work, made remarks celebrating the commitment of the social work community exemplified by Cousins.

The Pitt MSW program at Pitt-Bradford is fully accredited by the Council on Social Work Education and provides interested students in the region with the opportunity to earn a graduate degree in social work on a part-time, structured basis.

For more information on the Pitt-Bradford MSW program, contact coordinator Stephanie Eckstrom at (814)362-7527 or sae102@pitt.edu.